The background description provided here is for the purpose of generally presenting the context of the disclosure. Work of the presently named inventors, to the extent it is described in this background section, as well as aspects of the description that may not otherwise qualify as prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor impliedly admitted as prior art against the present disclosure.
Pharmaceuticals and medical supplies may be provided within a healthcare facility. For example, in a healthcare facility, pharmaceuticals (e.g., medications) and other medical supplies are distributed from a central distribution location (e.g., a central pharmacy) using a medication management system. Medication management systems may be classified as centralized medication management systems or decentralized medication management systems. For example, in a centralized medication management system, medications may be provided from the central pharmacy directly to a healthcare professional (e.g., a nurse) that will be administering the medications to respective patients.
Conversely, in a decentralized medication management system, multiple medication dispensing sites are located remotely from a centralized distribution location, such as a facility's pharmacy. The remote dispensing sites, such as a nurses' station in a hospital ward, serve as base stations from which healthcare professionals can readily access medications or other medical supplies to be administered to the patients under their care. A decentralized medication management system may implement a decentralized medication dispensing system (MDS). In some implementations, the MDS may correspond to an automated dispensing machine (ADM) that stores medications in secure transportable compartments.
Information associated with the pharmaceuticals and medical supplies may be managed and/or tracked. Example information tracked for pharmaceuticals and medical supplies include, but is not limited to, inventory, location, patient prescription information, associated healthcare professional, etc.